Six Manchester United and Arsenal wonderkids tipped as Football Manager greats

The new Football Manager is available to buy, a game so compelling it prompted a Guardian article earlier this year asking if addiction to it was a medical condition.

Key to success in the game is identifying and snapping up the hidden gems, young players which can blossom into superstars.

The Mirror have compiled a list of as many of 50 wonderkids to target in Football Manager 2016 from across the world - and seven of them are based in the Premier League.

One is West Ham's Reece Oxford, who has already broken into the Hammers first team, keeping Mesut Ozil quiet on the opening day of the season.

The remaining six are from Manchester United and Arsenal are are less well known. Here are the players worth looking out for...

Joel Pereira (Manchester United)

19-year-old goalkeeper Joel Pereira is the only English based shot stopper to feature on the list and is very highly rated. While he has David de Gea, Sergio Romero, and Sam Johnstone in front of him, Pereira is a bright prospect. He is a Portugal under-21 international, who has signed on loan at Rochdale. Their manager Keith Hill told the Manchester Evening News this week: "One good thing to come out of the night was Joel’s performance and I think he is going to be a top, top goalkeeper. His pass range is remarkable, he has composure and a thirst to win, he reads an opponent very well. He is an exceptional talent."

Fosu-Mensah arrived at United from Ajax and signed professional terms with the club in August when he turned 17. The youngster is a defender who the Manchester Evening News described as 'graceful' in style earlier this year, while he can also play in midfield. He is a Dutch youth international but is also eligible to play for Ghana.

16-year-old Callum Gribbin is the youngest Manchester United player to feature, and is an outstanding young talent. The attacking midfielder has been attracting attention with his set piece ability, scoring a number of spectacular goals in the academy. The Mail reported Gribbin was invited by Louis van Gaal to train with the first team this season, a sign of how highly the Dutchman rates him.

Midfielder Chris Willock is an England youth international and has already appeared in pre-season action for the Gunners. The skilful 17-year-old was described by Arsene Wenger as a 'very interesting player' in 2014, reported The Guardian. Willock is a left-winger and has an older brother Matthew who plays for Manchester United's under-21 side. The Mirror reported earlier this year that Barcelona were even interested in signing him from the Gunners.

Donyell Malen signed for Arsenal this summer from Ajax, a move which was a real blow for the Dutch side. The 16-year-old striker was valued as one of the club's hottest prospects, and has already played for Arsenal's under-19s in the UEFA Youth League, and trained with the first team. Wim Jonk, head of youth development at his former club, told SkySports: "Donyell is a great talent. It is extremely unfortunate that he is leaving Ajax. We have made him an excellent offer and presented a clear development plan. If the player still makes another choice, it is disappointing."

Vlad Dragomir (Arsenal)

16-year-old midfielder Vlad Dragomir was another recent addition to the Gunners. Arsenal paid £71,000 to ACS Poli Timisoarave for the Romania Under-16 captain, and the teenager courted accidental controversy when racy images on his Instagram account were picked up by The Mirror. He is an exciting talent who posed with the number 7 shirt when he signed for the club, and scored his first goal in a Gunner shirt this week, netting from long range in an under-21 win over Norwich.

Dan Coombs

Dan Coombs is a writer who is keen to embrace the internet revolution. He first started writing for us in June 2011 and commenced his new role as Sports Editor in February 2012.
As a trained journalist he has met famous faces from Mr T to Boris Johnson. He once featured in an England World Cup music video too, but it did not make the charts.
He grew up wanting to be a Formula 1 driver, but it looks like this dream has passed him by. Instead, he hopes you enjoy reading his writing on our site, as we seek to debate the day's sporting hot topics.